FENTON, MI – A Fenton man pleaded guilty Thursday in federal
court in connection with an extensive multi-million dollar mortgage fraud
conspiracy, according to a news release from United States Attorney Barbara L.
McQuade.

Ronnie Edward Duke, 45, of Fenton was charged with conspiring
to defraud mortgage lenders and obtain money and property by means of
materially false and fraudulent pretenses and representations.

The scheme lasted for close to four years, ending in July
2007 when the FBI executed seven search warrants in metropolitan Detroit and Florida.
Over those four years, more than 500 fraudulent mortgage loans, more than 100
straw buyers and about 180 different residential properties in metro Detroit
were used or falsely represented as collateral for loans.

"Mortgage fraud harms our community because
foreclosures lead to vacant homes, which lower property values and serve as
havens for criminal activity," McQuade said in a news release.

Losses to the lenders resulting from the scheme are expected
to exceed $100 million.

Duke and his co-conspirators used the money to purchase
luxury items, including a helicopter, cars, boats, residential properties and
extensive travel to the Caribbean and foreign vacation destinations.

The scheme involved obtaining "real" loans and, in
many instances, "ghost" loans, from mortgage lenders. The loan
applications and other related documents were fraudulent.